Citizen Action Wisconsin Inc.

Posted: June 1, 2012
Updated: January 14, 2014

Fall: Oath • Spending
Recall: Oath • Spending

This is the corporate entity first created by Citizen Action of Wisconsin to make independent expenditures in 2010. Citizen Action is a coalition of labor, senior citizen, environmental, civil rights and other organizations that traditionally back Democratic candidates in state and local elections. The group spent about $118,000 on independent expenditures in elections in 2010 and 2011.

Fall Elections

The group reported interest in making independent expenditures to support the two incumbent Democrats in the 30th and 18th Senate Districts, as well as the Democratic challenger in the open 85th Assembly District but reported no spending.

Recall Elections

This group spent $60,000 on online ads to support Democrat Tom Barrett against Republican Governor Scott Walker in a June 5, 2012 recall election.  Walker, the lieutenant govenor and four GOP Senate seats were targeted for recall because of the governor's 2011 plan to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights. 

Last active election: Recall 2011

This organization is registered with the Government Accountability Board following the January 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC as a corporation making independent disbursements.

Center for Union Facts

Posted: May 31, 2012
Updated: January 17, 2014

Estimated Spending: $1 million

This is a Washington D.C.-based anti-union group founded by Rick Berman, who lobbies Congress for the food and beverage industry.

The group reportedly spent $1 million on a statewide television ad buy in Wisconsin that featured issue ads like this one that slammed the way unions operate.  The ad campaign started in March 2011 and coincided with a months-long union backed effort to recall Republican Governor Scott Walker for his 2011 plan to severely restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.  Walker, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and four GOP Senate seats faced recall elections June 5, 2012.

In 2011, nine state senators were targeted for recall; two of the six Republican senators targeted by unions were successfully recalled in districts 18 and 32.

Workers' Voice

Posted: May 31, 2012
Updated: January 15, 2014

Fall: Oath • Spending
Recall: Oath • Spending

This is a Washington D.C.-based Super PAC controlled by the AFL-CIO.

Fall Elections

The group made independent expenditures towards the production of print materials to support Democrats in a number of State Senate and Assembly races.

Recall Elections

The group reported making nearly $153,000 in independent expenditures against Republican Governor Scott Walker who faced a June 5, 2012 recall election along with the lieutenant governor and four GOP Senate seats because of the 2011 passage of the governor's plan to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.

This organization is registered with the Government Accountability Board following the January 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC as a corporation making independent disbursements.

NRA Political Victory Fund

Posted: May 30, 2012
Updated: January 10, 2014

Oath • Spending

This political action committee is controlled by the Virginia-based National Rifle Association, the nation's largest pro-gun lobbying and advocacy organization.

Between 2000 and 2011 the PAC made independent expenditures in Wisconsin legislative and statewide races exceeding $1.1 million. In the 2012 recall elections it made independent expenditures on behalf of  Governor Scott Walker and all four Republican Senate candidates.

The group also created a corporation to sponsor outside electioneering activities in the 2012 recall elections.

Last active election: Recall 2011

Corn PAC

Posted: May 29, 2012
Updated: January 14, 2014

Fall: Oath • Spending
Recall: Oath • Spending

This political action committee is run by the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association. The PAC's treasurer is Jeanne Welch, wife of former Republican Senator Bob Welch of Redgranite who is now a lobbyist representing the corn growers association.

Fall Election

The group spent $2,764.47 for newspaper ads to support five Republicans (41st, 29th, 96th, and 69th Assembly and 12th Senate Districts) and two Democrats (24th Senate and 47th Assembly Districts).

Recall Election

The PAC spent about $1100 on newspaper ads to support Republican Representative Jerry Petrowski of Marathon who won one of four GOP Senate seats targeted for recall June 5, 2012 along with Republican Governor Scott Walker and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch.  Walker and the others faced recall because of the governor's 2011 plan last to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights. Petrowski ran in the 29th Senate District recall election in place of  Republican Senator Pam Galloway who resigned after a recall election was called for her district.

Last active election: 2010

PCCC Recall Fund IE

Posted: May 29, 2012
Updated: January 15, 2014

Oath • Spending

This corporation was created last year by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee to make independent expenditures to support Democratic incumbents and candidates in nine state Senate recall elections.  The Washington D.C.-based group supports Democratic candidates for elected offices around the country. Together with its political action committee, the group spent $271,271 on independent expenditures in the 2011 recall races.  PCCC also teamed with another pro-Democratic group - Democracy for America - to sponsor about $1 million in phony issue ads.

Both the corporation and the PAC made independent expenditures again in spring 2012 to oppose Republican Governor Scott Walker who faced a June 5 recall election.  Walker, the lieutenant governor and four GOP Senate seats were targeted in second round of recalls after passage in 2011 of the governor's plan to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.

Last active election: Recall 2011

This organization is registered with the Government Accountability Board following the January 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC as a corporation making independent disbursements.

State Tea Party Express

Posted: May 29, 2012
Updated: January 17, 2014

Estimated Spending: $400,000

This is a phony issue ad group created in 2009 by a California-based political action committee – Our Country Deserves Better PAC.  The Tea Party Express backs conservative Republican candidates for state and federal offices and pushes conservative causes like lower taxes and smaller government. The group also takes conservative policy positions on issues like immigration, health care and defense.

Tea Party Express sponsored a 30-second television ad in support of GOP Governor Scott Walker who faces a recall election because of his plan last year to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.  In addition to Walker, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and four GOP Senate seats also face June 5 recalls.  The ad applauded the governor, claiming his policies balanced the state budget and have improved the state economy.

Last active election: Supreme Court 2011

Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee

May 29, 2012

This is a Washington D.C.-based group that backs Democratic candidates in legislative races across the country.  It spent an estimated $400,000 on independent expenditures and phony issue ads in the 2011 recall races that targeted six Republican and three Democratic state senators.  This outside group has a cozy relationship with the national Democratic Party and gets much of its funding from labor unions and large corporations.

In a second round of recalls in 2012, the group sponsored a 30-second television ad in late May that shows film footage of a televised meeting in March in which GOP Senator Terry Moulton appears stymied when asked about legislative measures he supported that are intended to spur job growth in Wisconsin.  Moulton was one of four Republican senators along with Governor Scott Walker and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch who were targeted for recall elections set for June 5 because of the governor's plan last year to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.

Earlier, the organization's Wisconsin political action committee also sponsored a television ad that attacked Moulton for supporting tax breaks for large corporations and wealthy individuals at the expense of state aid to public education.

Last active election: 2011

Grassroots North Shore

Posted: May 29, 2012
Updated: January 10, 2014

Oath • Spending

This is a Shorewood, Wisconsin-based political action committee created to support Democratic candidates for statewide office in the legislature. It made its first independent expenditures on behalf of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett in a June 5, 2012 recall election aimed at removing Republican Governor Scott Walker because of his 2011 plan to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights. In addition to Walker, the lieutenant governor and four GOP Senate seats also were targeted for recall.

Coalition for American Values Committee (PAC)

Posted: May 31, 2012
Updated: January 15, 2014

Oath • Spending

The Coalition for American Values Action is a conservative, Illinois-based federal Super PAC. It first registered as a PAC in Wisconsin in 2012 that to make independent expenditures to support Republican Governor Scott Walker in the June 5 recall election called because of 2011 passage of his plan to restrict public employee collective bargaining rights.  In addition to Walker, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and four GOP Senate seats also were targeted for recall elections.

The conservative group also created a corporation to make independent expenditures in the 2012 recalls. The corporation reported more than $400,000 in spending and the PAC reported no spending.  The corporation was later sued in a 2014 complaint accusing it of violating Wisconsin campaign finance laws for failing to disclose the funding for its 2012 recall activities.

It did not report any spending.